Generally, a steering system, which is an apparatus for steering the direction of a vehicle according to a manipulation of a driver, includes a steering wheel, steering shaft, steering gear and steering linkage.
The steering wheel is an apparatus for transforming a manipulating force of a driver to a rotational movement, and the steering shaft is an apparatus for transmitting a rotational movement of a steering wheel to a steering gear. The steering gear is an apparatus for decelerating a speed of a rotational movement of a steering wheel, and simultaneously for transforming a rotational movement to a linear movement and transmitting to a linkage mechanism. The steering linkage is an apparatus for transmitting a force from a steering gear to the front wheels of vehicle.
In addition to the basic components thus described in the steering system, a variety of convenient apparatuses are provided, and the most convenient apparatus is the one for changing the position of steering wheel according to driver's form and posture.
The apparatus for changing the position of the steering wheel includes a tilt device and a telescopic deice. The tilt apparatus is an apparatus for varying angles of steering wheels to up-down directions while the telescopic apparatus is an apparatus for axially sliding a steering shaft and a steering column to elongate or shorten the total length of the steering shaft and the steering column.
However, there is a drawback in that a tilt apparatus and a telescopic apparatus are separately provided. The tilt apparatus and the telescopic apparatus have to be operated in respectively separate manners to generate inconvenience. There is another drawback in that due to the separate provision of a tilt apparatus and telescopic apparatus, the steering system is complicated in structure thereof, therefore resulting in an increase in manufacturing cost.
The present invention is provided to address the above-mentioned problems and it is an object of the present invention to provide a tilt-telescopic apparatus for a steering system configured to engage the tilt and telescopic functions simultaneously. It is another object of the present invention to provide a tilt-telescopic apparatus for a steering system that is simplified in structure.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the tilt-telescopic apparatus for a steering system, which includes a main housing, an inner pipe longitudinally movable in a main housing, a column housing coupled to a distal end of the inner pipe and an upper housing rotatably hinged to a distal end of the column housing, comprises a manipulating lever rotatably hinged to a lower side of the main housing. A telescopic restraining means is formed at a distal end of the main housing and tightened by rotation of the manipulating lever to restrain the inner pipe. A cable is connected to one end of the manipulating lever and a tilt lever is connected to the other end of the cable and rotatably mounted at the upper housing. A fixation gear is mounted at an upper side or lower side of the column housing and is longitudinally formed with teeth along a curvature. A tilt restraining means includes teeth meshed with teeth of the fixation gear and rotates in cooperation with the tilt lever for separating the teeth in relation to the rotating direction by pushing the teeth toward the teeth of the fixation gear or pulling the teeth.